Watching
by m.cuthbert
Summary: A Rambling boy story. As noenigma said years ago, it seems we are all drawn to attempt this episode - even newcomers like me get to it eventually. I don't own any of the characters in this story - unfortunately, only the calories consumed in its writing belong to me.


_Special thanks go to crimefictionfan, who humoured me by reading this while it was still a work in progress._

 _This is my first attempt at a story with a twist. I apologise in advance for trying to be clever._

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 _ **Another night.**_

Laura's reaction to the other man made her sigh. Clearly thoughts of her impending date paled against the pleasure of seeing Robbie from afar. She wasn't oblivious, she knew that she loved Robbie. But he wasn't ready, and Laura knew him too well to push. As Laura stopped her bike at the place Robbie had stood earlier, she wished they could work this out. They were good together; best friends who had seen each other through good and bad times, and who could be so much more if only Robbie could move on. Instead, here they were - yet another night that they could have spent together, spent apart.

They did spend the next morning together, courtesy of yet another dead body. At first, as he listened to Laura talk, Robbie appeared distracted and she fleetingly wondered if he had actually seen the two of them last night, but no, it was Jack Cornish that had him preoccupied. She didn't share Robbie's opinion of him; he had always been too self centered for her liking, but it was typical of Robbie to get involved. As Laura packed away her things, she watched Robbie examine the scene, checking dates on items of rubbish. "You're a single bloke. Zap it in the microwave, it'll be fine" Laura told him with a smirk, before getting into her car and leaving him with a smile on his face. She loved seeing him smile; it took years off him and reminded her of a much younger Robbie. He was smiling again in the morgue later, after Laura had listed all the the reasons why they were no further forward. Finally acknowledging her teasing tone Robbie replied "you're enjoying this", and as she watched him wriggle his fingers behind his back in a farewell wave she couldn't help but think 'so are you'.

 _ **Another look.**_

The look on Robbie's face was comical. A real puppy dog expression that had Laura promising another look at the body, before she found her senses and told him not to push his luck. Then he left her with a teasing look, just like the day before when he'd left her with the bill at lunch. As Laura left the station she had no doubt that she would go straight back to the morgue, going over both her findings and the doctors body determined to find what Robbie needed. Was it her imagination, or was there a subtle difference in their exchanges? Robbie was acting a bit more lighthearted; some of his looks and smiles could be almost be an attempt at long forgotten flirting.

She could tell the moment Robbie saw her; his smile and the familiar raising of his eyebrows giving him away as Laura drew closer. Never one to believe in unnecessary greetings, Laura launched into her explanations. She stood closer than normal, placing her hands on Robbie's shoulders to show how the doctor had been held down. Caught up in the details, Laura missed how Robbie looked at her, his surprise at their positions clear on his face. Suddenly Laura stilled as she realised she had stopped being clinical, and instead was smoothing her hand over his shoulder in a much more intimate gesture. As Laura's voice faltered she glanced at Robbie, his wry smile and the look in his eyes saying more than his words ever could. Laura's gaze dropped to Robbie's mouth in response, and she held her breath for a second as she considered the very real possibility of their first kiss being the result of a murder demonstration. Then Laura dropped her eyes and her hands and the moment was gone, lost as she continued with the facts.

 _ **Another step.**_

She actually felt a jolt as Robbie took her hand, saw his smile as he helped Laura over the fence. She was right, something had definitely changed between them over the last few days. James being away had left them on their own, and without his usual hints and smiles to enforce a 'just friends' distance, they had allowed themselves to be drawn together. Finally, she could see them moving forwards. It had been a long time coming, and she couldn't be happier. Robbie kept hold of Laura's hand as they made their way down the embankment, swinging her round as they reached the bottom. As Robbie let go of her hand, she felt a flash of dismay before realising he'd just let her go in order to take a proper hold. Definitely progress; Robbie frequently offered his hand to help Laura up from, or over dead bodies but holding hands like this was a first. "We're out of step" Laura said; whether she meant their actual footsteps or being surprised by Robbie taking her hand she wasn't sure. It was probably a bit of both.

But they didn't have chance to enjoy the moment, Robbie caught sight of a burning boat and took off running. While Laura reported the fire, she watched Robbie disappear through the hatch. Oh god, she thought, please let him be OK, let him find the girl and get out before the fire reaches the gas bottles. By the time Laura had ended the call and run closer, she was worried. It was taking too long; all that smoke in such a small space. He couldn't die now, not when it looked like he was finally ready to live. Suddenly the smoke parted and he was there; the girl limp in his arms as he turned to search the path for Laura. Who, after a quick, heartfelt prayer, ran to help him. Their personal moment was over, pushed aside as their professional sides kicked in, getting themselves and others clear of the boat. As sirens signalled the arrival of the emergency services Robbie turned to Laura, apologising as he cancelled their curry. As much as she understood his work coming first she couldn't help sighing; their moment was gone, and who knew when they would get another one. But disappointment turned to surprise as Robbie continued talking.

 _ **Another chapter.**_

At the end of the night, Laura led the way up the path to her front door; one hand trailing behind, held once again in Robbie's firm grip. He'd taken hold of it as soon as they had left the restaurant, starting his new chapter at the first opportunity. Laura stopped as she reached the door and turned to face Robbie. She watched him move to close the gap between them, saw Laura's free hand coming up to rest on his chest. Then, at last, Robbie dipped his head and Laura tilted her face up to meet his. When their lips met Val closed her eyes, lost in the memory of her own first kiss from Robbie. When she opened them, Robbie had taken a step back and Laura had turned to unlock her door. Val shook her head, typical Robbie. Neither of them were naive youngsters and yet here he was, still trying to do the right thing. She had watched this friendship develop; had seen its potential on the day she realised that watching over Robbie meant watching Laura too. Val sighed as she considered that up until recently their progress had always been slow, so maybe a goodnight kiss was enough for them, for today. But then she watched as Laura took hold of Robbie's hand again, and with an encouraging tug led him into the house. When the door closed taking them out of sight, Val laughed out loud. She should have trusted Laura - after all those nights of knowing not to push, Laura had finally found the right night to pull.

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 **Author's note** \- I'm still not sure that I've achieved what I set out to write 4 months ago, but to be honest I've had enough of the rewrites. I'm publishing today to permanently stop me from playing with it - so if anyone is confused by the ending, its my fault, not yours. I promise to stick to writing moments of fluff from now on.

In case you're still wondering, this is my version of Ramblin' Boy - but I've told it from Val's point of view not Laura's.


End file.
